wheeler



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

E. P. WHEELER. Y

WINDMILL.

No. 263,447. Patented Aug. 29, 1882,l

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M v 259 6fm@ (No Model.) 2 sheets-sheet 2. E. P. WHEELER.

WINDMILL.

No. 263,447. Patented Augu 29, 1882.

Uwrrrgn gramas Partnr rines,

EDWARD P. WHEELER, OF BELOIT, VISGONSIN.

WINDIVIILL.

'SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 263,447, dated August 29, 1882.

Application led March 1B, 1882, (No model.)

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, EDWARD P. WHEELER, of Beloit, in the county of Roel; and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Windmills, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

Figure l is a side elevation of my windmill. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view with some of the parts omitted. Fig. 3 is a front view of the wind-wheel. Fig. 4l is a plan view of a section ot' the wind-wheel, showing devices for holding the fans therein. Fig. 5 is a view of adetached portion of my mill, in which is illustrated the method of hinging the tail-vanes to the turn-table; and Fig. 6 is a view of a detached part ot' one of the fans of the windwheel, illustrating the method of securing the fans in the wheel.

My invention has relation to that class of windmills which are automaticin their action and seltregulating; and it consists, rst, in a windmill having two main tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with each other and separated by an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action of the air-currents passing through the central openingof the wind-wheel and their outer surfaces to the action of the currents of air passing the outer edges ot' the wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together and hinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turn-table of the mill; and it consists, secondly, in a windmill having two main tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with each other and separated by an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces tothe action of the air-currents passing through the central opening of the windwheel and their outer surfaces to the action ofthe currents of air passing the outer edges of the wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together and hinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turn-table, and a pendent regulating vane connected with a rocking-shaft for turning the tailor rudder vanes laterally, the pendent vane acting normally by the gravitation of its own 'weight to keep the tail or rudder vanes substantially parallel with the line of the working-shaft of the mill, in which position the rudder-vanes will operate to steer and hold the wheel to the wind; but when the wind increases in force sufficient to overcome the weight of the pendent vane it will be carried forward and upward, rocking said shaft and through the medium of segment-gears or other suitable means will deiiect or turn the rudder-vanes at an angle from their normal position toward the wind-wheel, when they will operate to steer the wheel out of the wind; and it consists, thirdly, in a windmill having two main tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with each other and separated by an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action ofthe air-eurrents passing through the centralopening of the wind-wheel and their outer surfaces to the action of the currents of air passing the outer edges of the wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together and hinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turn-table, in combination with a pendent regulating-vane attached to a rocking-shaft for turning the tail or rudder vanes laterally, and a wind-wheel mounted and adapted to turn laterally with the turntable outof the wind 5 and it consists, fourthly, in a windmill, of the pendent regulating-vane provided with an adjustable weight, said vane being attached to a rocking-shaft turning in bearings upon the turn-table, and having a segment-gear or other suitable mechanism for turning the rudder or tail vane or vanes of the mill laterally, and acting normally and automatically by the gravitation of its own and the adjusted weight to keep said tailor rudder vane or vanes substantially parallel with the line of the working-shaft of the mill and the wind-wheel steered to the wind; and it consists, ifthly, in a wind-mill having a pendent regulating vane and rockingshaft, the ar rangement of a sliding weight on the bar of the pendent vane, connected by means of a chain or cord to a swivel-bar made to turn' laterally with the tail-vanes upon the turn-taA ble, and for the purpose of automatically regulating the motion of the wind-wheel by providing a constantly-varying resisting force, greater or less, as desired, to the movement ot' the mill out of the wind; and it consists, sixthly, of a wind-wheel composed of individual slot-fans placed in and secured to suitablecastings, and connected together and held at IOO suitable angles in the wheel by means of parallel rods secured to collars fastened to radial arms extending out from the hub of the wheel; and it further Consists, seventhly, in the windwheel, also hereinafter particularlydescribed.

ln the drawings, A is the turntable of the mill, upon which, on one side, is mounted the driving-shaft B, to one end ot' which shaft the wind-wheel G is attached. Said turn-table, on its lower side, has the usual pivotal bearin gs, and is secured to the mill-tower in the usual manner.

D is a casting provided with suitable bearings, and hinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turn-table A.

a n are bars or shafts, preferably made ot' tubular iron gas-pipe, rigidly attached to said casting 1) by screw-threads or other suitable means. Said bars are further secured and held in position by a cross or brace bar, O, and are made to support the two tail or rudder vanes E E. Said tail or rudder' vanes may be placed parallel with each other, or set slightly detleeted outward from a parallel position, and should be far enough apart to be acted upon by the currents of air passing the outer edges ofthe wind-wheel. The advantages which I claim for my double tail-vane over the single tail-varie in windmills as heretofore constructed and in general use are, first, that the two tailvanes, when rigidly connected and separated l an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action of the air-currents passing through the central opening ofthe wind-wheel and their outer surfaces to the action ot' the currents of air passing` the outer edges ofthe wind-wheel, as specified, will hold the windwheel more steadily in the wind than a single tail-vane, thus giving increased power to the mill.

A serious detect in all windmills as heretofore constructed having but a single tail-vane has been that owing to the obstruction ofthe wheel the force of the wind is broken and its direction changed before reaching the tailvane, and the vaneis left to swing, as it were, in a.- vacuum, without sutlicient and constant force to steady the wheel in the wind. The result is that the tail-vane has to seek its steadying force by swinging laterally to one side and the other until it reaches the euricnts of air which blow bythe outer edges of the fans. This gives an unsteady lateral oscillation to the turn-table and mill, throwing the wind otfthe wheel and materially diminishing its power. rlhis lateral oscillation in mills having a single tail-vane is well known as the tlop 7 ofthe tail, and becomes so serious a defeet that it has been found impracticable to construct mills of that character having a wind-wheel ot' over twenty-tive feet diameter. By the use of two tail-vanes in my mill, braced over against each other and placed far enough apart to be constantly and uniformly acted upon by the air-currents, both on their inner and outer surface, I am enabled to overn come in a great measure this defect of unsteady lateral oscillation, and at the same time to make said vanes in large mills shorter and less unwieldy than is possible in the case of the single tail-vane in mills as ordinarily cnnstructed.

G is a rocking shatt,.secured to and made free to turn in suitable bearings upon theturntable A.

F is a pendent vane, rigidly attached to said rocking shaft, and hanging with its plane parallel or in line with said shaft.

is an adjustable weight, made to slide on the bar of the pendent vane. Said weightmay be provided with a set-screw or other suitable means for securing it tixedly at any desired position on said bar; or it may be connected with a cord or chain working over a pulley at.- tached to the rocking shaft above the bar, and adjusted hy means ot' said cord or chain in the following manner: Vhen it is desired to set the weight at a fixed position on the bar, by securing the cord or chain, as the case may be, toanyeonvcnientpartofthcturn-table. When, however, it is desired to make said weight a weight of varying resistance yon the pendent vane and a more perfect automatic regulator, the cord or chain may be fastened to the one or the other of the arms of the swivel-bar 7;, according as a greater or less weight is desired on said pendent vane, after the force of the wind has become sufficient to initiate the movement of said vane and rock its shaft far enough to detlect the tail or ruddcrvanes from their normal position. As said vanes are turned laterally upon the turn table, said swivel-bar 7c is also, by lneans of the bracerods p p', carried around laterally with them, the vertical bolt gforming the common axis of oscillation. By this lateral movement the point s of said swivelbar constantly approaches nearer to the rocking shaft and pendent vane, which allows the wcight,in case its cord is attached to said arm,to slide down the bar, thus increasing the weight ou the pendent vane and offering greater resistance to the movement ot' the mill out of the wind. On the other hand, as the lateral movement of the tail or rudder vanes continues the distance of the point s of said swivel-bar from the rocking shaft and pendent vane constantly increases, which op` erates, in case the weightcord is attached to that arm, to draw the weight up the bar, and thus diminish the resistance offered by the pendent vane to the movement of the mill out of the wind.

7L is a segment-gear rigidly attached to the rocking shaft Gr, and made to engage with the corresponding segment-gear, 1T, upon the casting l).

Z is an arm extending up from said rocking shaft, to which the chain or cord eis fastened. Said chain or cord e is made to pass over a pulley, m, on the standard r of the turn-table, and thence connect with a rod passing down through the vertical axis of the mill. The de- IOO IOS

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gas-pipe, screwed into sockets in the .shafts ofr the spider or hub of the wheel. Attached to each of said arms are two adjustable collars, t

t', adapted to slide upon said arms,and which are provided with set-screws or other suitable i means for securing them at any desired posi- Said collars on either side have two perforated ears made to receive the parallel rods u a', connecting the several arms.jy The different sections ofthe wheel aremade up of individual fans c c', which fansare made.I to fit into small castings e o', and are secured f tion thereon.

therein by screws or other suitable means. These castings v n are perforated or provided with ears on either end to receivethe rodsuu, and are made so as to secure respectively the desired relative angle of the fans to each other in the wheel. rlhe rods au are passed through the ears on either side of the fans, thus connecting them together in acontiuuous section. The ends of said rods are provided with screwthreads, and are secured to the collars t t by means of check-nuts. Between the interspaces ofthe fans are placed thimbles, made to slide over the rods a u, and hold the fans at a proper distance apart. In addition to supporting the fans in the wheel, the rods u u', with their check-nuts, furnish a means of adjusting the angle of the fans, and also of tarving7 or twisting them as they approach the outer edge of the wheel.

'Ihe operation of my mill is as follows: Under ordinary circumstances and in au average wind the two tail or rudder vanes stand parallel with or at a slight angle to the line of the working-shaft of the mill and to each other. In this position thependentvaneh` hangs vertically downward, presenting its full surface to the wind, and the wind-wheel C is held squarely and steadily to the wind. When the force of the wind acting on the surface ofthe pendent vane becomes sufficient to swing or carry it out of its vertical toward a horizontal position the rocking shaft G is turned in its bear-iu gs, carrying with it the segment-gear h, which, engaging with the gearz', swings the tail or rudder vanes E E laterally towardthe windwheel, which in turn guides the wheel out ofthe wind. This lateralmovementofthe wind-wheel out ofthe wind, it will be observed, is not effected by the direct action of the wind on the pendent vane, as in the case of mills having a single flexible tail and a rigid side vane where the movement of the wheel is caused by the direct action of the wind on the side vane. The sole office or function of said pendent vane, as respects said movement, is to change the relative position of the tail or rudder vanes to the wind-wheel. Until this relative position of said vanes to the wind-wheel is changed the wheel remains fully to the wind; but `assoon as said relative position becomes changed the tail-vanes, acting` as a rudder, steer the wheel out of the wind. As soon as the force of the wind abates the pendent vane, by the gravitation of its own and the added adjustable weight, returns to its vertical position,'rock ing the shaft backward, and by means of the segment-gears swings the rudder-vanes around again to their normal position.

I am aware that windmills have heretofore been constructed having two tail or steering vanes loosely held apart by springs or coupled by toggle-joints, so as to approach each other when acted upon by the force of the wind, and I am also aware that windmills have heretofore been constructed in which the tail-vane is double and diverges each way from the central shaft, constituting what is known as the feathered tail-vane.77 I do not therefore claim, broadlyfa windmill having two tail or steering vganes; but

What I do claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A windmill having two tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with or set at a slight angle to each other and separated by an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action of the air-currents passing through the central opening of the windwheel and their outer surfaces to the action of the currents of air passing the outer edges ofthe wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together and hinged to and adapted tovturn laterally upon the turntable of the mill.

2. lA windmill having two tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with or set at a slight angle to each other and separated by an interveningspace, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action of the air-currents passing through the central opening of the wind-wheel and their outer surfaces to the action of the currents of air passing the outer edges of the wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together andlhinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turntable, and a pendent regulating-vane connected with a' rocking shaft for turning the tail or rudder vanes laterally, the pendent vane acting normally, by the gravitation of its own weight, to keep the tail or rudder vanes substantially parallel to the line of the workingshaft of the mill and the wind-wheel steered to the Wind.

3. A windmill having two tail or rudder vanes standing substantially parallel with each other and separated by an intervening space, so as to present their inner surfaces to the action of the air-currents passing through the central opening of the wind-wheel and their ILO IOS

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outer surfaces to the action of the currents ot' air passing the outer edges of the wind-wheel, said vanes being rigidly connected together and hinged to and adapted to turn laterally upon the turntable, in combination with a pendent regulating-vane attached to a rocking shaft G, swivel-bar 7s, and cordf, for the purshaft for turning the tail or rudder vanes laterally, and a wind-wheel mounted upon and adapted to turn laterally with the turn-table out of the wind.

4. In a windmill, the pendent regulatingvane' provided with an adjustable weight, said vane beingattached to arockingshaftturnin gin bearings upon the turn-fable and having a segment-gear for turning the tail or rudder vanes of the mill laterally, and acting normallT and automatically, by the gravitation of its own and the adjusted weight, to keep said tail or rudder Yanes substantially parallel with the line ot' the workingshaft ot' the mill and the ind-wheel steered to the wind.

5. In a windmill, the combination of the sliding weight Ivc,t1he pendent vane F, rocking pose specified.

6. In a Windmill having a pendent regulating-Vane, the arrangement of an adjustable weight on said vane, substantially as described, and for the purpose specified.

7. The foregoing-described wind-Wheel C, composed of individual slat-fans placed in and secured to the castings c c', and connected together and held at suitable angles in the windwheel by means of the parallel rods u uf, se cured to the collars t t', fastened to the radial arms a; w', extending out from the hub of the wheel, substantially as described.

EDlVARD 1. VHEELEl-t.

Witnesses:

CHARLES F. Wurm, MARTIN L. WHEELER. 

